Brassiere



Feb. 11, 1964 G. R. SEPERACK BRASSIERE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

Filed March 29, 1965 Feb. 11, 1964 G. R. SEPERACK BRASSIERE 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 29, 1963 FIGS.

United States Patent 3,126,848 BRASSIERE Gertrude ll. Seperaeir,Bridgeport, Conn, assiguor to The llarncr Brothers Company, Bridgeport,(Conn, a corporation of Qonnecticut Filed Mar. 29, 1953, Ser. No. 258322in Claims. (Cl. 123-516) This a plication relates to brassieres, and isparticularly concerned with the provision of a novel and improvedbrass-lore for Wear with a wide variety of attire.

It is customary in many types of brassieres to provide the brassierewith straps attached at the front of the brassiere at a point over thebreast supporting pocket and extending over the shoulder of the wearerto a point on the back of the brassiere. Such straps are usuallyprovided with some form of an adjusting means whereby the length of thestraps may be adjusted to meet the requirements of the wearer and, atthe same time, provide the required support. One of the dificulties withsuch an arrangement is that the straps must be worn in a rela tivelyfixed position on the shoulder. In addition, the adjusting means oftenforms a bulge or protuberance which is apparent through the outergarments worn over the brassiere. While such brassieres are extensivelyused, their use is somewhat limited by the type of outer garments beingworn. For example, where the outer garments to be worn have wide, opennecks, it is usually necessary to resort to brassieres with other meansof support. Such brassieres may not be as comfortable and may notprovide the type of support desired. in any event, a special brassiereis required for opened neck garmerits.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a brassierehaving shoulder straps which may be worn in the conventional manner withnormal attire and, also, with opened neck garments.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a brassiere inwhich the shoulder straps may be worn in a variety of positions withoutchanging support properties or appearance.

A still further object is to provide such a brassiere in which theshoulder straps are self-adjusting thereby eliminating bulgingadjustable attachments.

These and other objects will be more apparent from the followingdescription and appended drawings in which,

FIG. 1 is a front view of the brassiere of the instant invention withthe back portion brought around into the plane of the front portion;

PEG. 2 is a front view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the brassiere as itwould appear on the wearer; and

PEG. 3 is a rear view showing the back of the brassiere on the wearer.

The brassiere of the instant invention includes front panels 2, 4,joined at their abutting edges, such as, by a stitched scam 6. Each ofthe panels 2, 4 has a breast supporting cup composed of a lowersupporting panel 8 and a top panel ll), the supporting panel 8 and toppanel ill being joined to each other, such as, by stitched seam l2, andto the front panel by stitched seam id. The foregoing structure has beendescribed for purposes of illustration. it is to be understood that theconstruction of the front panels and breast supporting cups may bevaried without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

At their remote ends, front panels 2, d are joined, respectively, suchas, by a stitched seam 16, to back panels 18, 2b, the front panel andback panel being narrow adjacent scam in and widening outward toaccommodate the arm of the wearer. At their free ends, back panels3,1263% Patented Feb. 11, 1964 18, 20 are provided with fastening meanscomprised of hooks 22 at the free end of panel 18 and eyes 24 at thefree end of panel 24 Hooks 22 on panel 18 are carried on a reinforcingtape 26 connected, as by stitching, to the end of the panel. Eyes 24, ofwhich there are two sets for purposes of adjustment, are likewisecarried on a reinforcing tape 28 connected, as by stitching, to the freeend of panel 26 tape 28 extending outward from the end of the panel andbeyond eyes 24, forming a pad between the hooks and eyes and the body ofthe wearer.

As has been noted above, the front and back panels are narrowed,adjacent the point where they are joined, to accommodate the arm of thewearer. Both panels widen or extend upward on either side of the joiningseam, the back panel being widest at a point intermediate its joined'and free ends. From its widest point, the back panels 13, 20, narrowalong an arcuate path to the free end of the panel. Front panels 2, 4are widest at a point intermediate the ends where the panels areconnected to back panels 18, Ell, respectively, and where they arejoined, the widest point occurring in the top panel ill of breastsupporting cups 3. From their widest points, top panels Ell narrow alonga line to the point where front panels 2, 4 and the top panels 19 ofcups 8 are joined. The upper edges of top panels iii form a V, the legsof which extend upwardly and outwardly from the point where the frontpanels 2, 4 and top panels 10 are joined.

Straps Ell, 32 are connected along their sides to the top panels ill offront panels 2, 4, respectively, along the upwardly and outwardly endinglegs of the V formed by the upper edges of top panels Iii. At theiropposite ends, straps 3h, 32 are connected along their sides to thearcuate extending edges of back panels 18, 2b, the connection betweenthe straps and the back panels extending from the widest point of theback panels to the free ends along the arcuate edges of the panels.Straps 3Q, 32 may be separate members or may be a single continuousmemher, in the latter case a suitable dart may be sewed into the strapto permit the strap to be connected to top panels iii.

In the brassiere of the instant invention, straps 3t 32 are elastic intheir longitudinal direction and back panels 18, Eli are elastic atleast in a direction extending from front panels 22, 4 to the free endof the back panels. Preferably, back panels 13, 2d are also elastic inthe transverse direction. Thus, the back panel is wholly or partiallyelastic in the direction of the arrows in FIG. 1 and, preferably also inthe direction of arrows 36. Straps 3d, 32 are elastic at least in thedirection of the arrows As best shown in FIG. 1, straps 3t 32 areconnected to top panels 10 and back panels 18, Ztl, respectively, insuch a manner that approximately one-half of the strap width isconnected to and becomes an integral part of the panels, the other halfof the elastic strap being free to stretch. Hence, over the top of thebreast supporting cup where one-half of the strap width is connected topanel 10, at least the remaining one-half width which is not directlyconnected to the panel retains its original elasticity. Although onehalf of the strap width is connected to the back panel, due to theelasticity of the back panel, both the connected one-half width and thefree one-half width are elastic.

Straps 3t), 32 may be of one continuous piece, but may be of a pluralityof elastic pieces joined and interconnected at spaced points in a singlestrap. As best shown in FIG. 1, the strap is comprised of a firstelastic member 49, and a second elastic member .2., the elastic membersbeing interconnected and joined at spaced points by loose stitches 44.By this construction each elastic member can be stretched Within limitswithout buckling or puckering the other elastic members.

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 2 and 3, the brassiere of theinstant invention may be worn by the wearer with the straps 3t 32 at theouter edge of the shoulder or, as shown in dotted lines, with the strapsover the shoulder or at any point therebetween. With closed neck attire,the straps may be placed over the shoulders in the dotted line positionof FIG. 2 or 3, or with open front, open neck attire, the straps may bepositioned outwardly at the ends of the shoulders. In either positionthe brassiere of the instant invention may be worn with comfort andwithout sacrifice of support or adjustment of the straps. Due to theelasticity of the straps and the manner in which the straps are attachedto the top panels of the breast supporting cups and the elastic backpanel, the relative location of the straps on the shoulder may beselected to accommodate the configuration in the neck line of the outerattire or garments.

The terms and expressions which have been employed are used as terms ofdescription and not of limitation, and there is no intention, in the useof such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of thefeatures shown and described or portions thereof, but it is recognizedthat various modifications are possible within the scope of theinvention claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. In a brassiere having a pair of front panels and a pair of backpanels, said panels joining to form a body encircling band, theimprovement comprising, a breastreceiving cup in each of said frontpanels, each of said breast-receiving cups having a top portionextending upwardly of said front panel, the top portions being joinedintermediate said cups with the upper edge of said joined top ortionsforming a V extending upwardly and outwardly from the point where saidtop portions join, and a pair of elastic shoulder straps fixedlyinterconnected and joined to each other at one of their endsintermediate said cups and connected at their opposite ends to said backpanels, said elastic straps extending away from their point ofinterconnectionand along one of the legs of said V, each strap beingconnected and joined along one side edge to the upper edge of one of thetop portions along the leg of the V formed by such portion, each of saidstraps intermediate said connection to said top portion and saidconnection to said back panels being spaced from said top portion andsaid back panels to form therebetween an opening for receiving thewearers arm.

2. In a brassiere as recited in claim 1 in which said straps comprise aplurality of longitudinally extending elastic portions interconected atspaced points intermediate their-ends.

3. In a brassiere as recited in claim 2 in which one of saidlongitudinally extending portions is connected at its opposite ends tosaid breast receiving cups and said back panels, respectively.

4. In a brassiere having a pair of front panels and a pair of backpanels, said panels joining to form a body encircling band, theimprovement comprising, a breastreceiving cup in each of said frontpanels, each of said breast-receiving cups having a top portionextending upwardly of said front panel, the top portions being joinedintermediate said cups with the upper edge of said joined top portionsforming a V extending upwardly and outwardly from the point where saidtop portions join, and'a pair of elastic shoulder straps fixedlyinterconnected and joined to each other at one of their endsintermediate said cups and connected at their opposite ends to said backpanels, said elastic straps extending away from their point ofinterconnection and along one of the legs of said V, each strap beingconnected and joined along one side edge to the upper edge of one of thetop portions along the leg of the V formed by such portion and extendingfrom said joined edge above and along the leg of said V, each of saidstraps intermediate said edge connected to said breast receiving cup andsaid edge connected to said back panels being spaced from said front andback panels to form therebetween an open-' ing for receiving the wearersarm. I v v 5. In a brassier'e as recited in claim 4- in which saidstraps comprise a plurality of longitudinally extending elastic portionsinterconnected at spaced points intermediate their ends.

6. In a bras siere as recited in claim 5 in which one of saidlongitudinally extending portions is connected at its opposite ends tosaid breast receiving cups and said back panels, respectively.

7. In a brassiere having a pair of front panels and a pair of backpanels, said front panels being joined at one of their ends to eachother and at their opposite ends to one end of one of said back panels,and a connector for interconnecting the opposite ends of said backpanels to each other, said front panels and said back panels when saidback panels are interconnected forming a body encircling band, theimprovement comprising, a breast receiving cup in each of said frontpanels, each of said breast receiving cups having a top panel extendingupward from said front panel and joining intermediate said cups with theupper edge of said joined top panels forming a V extending upwardly fromsaid front panel and outwardly from the point Where said top panels joinand a pair of elastic shoulder straps fixedly interconnected and joinedto each other at one of their ends intermediate said cups, said elasticstraps at their interconnected and joined ends each extending away fromthe point where said straps are interconnected and joined and along oneof the legs of said V, each strap being connected and joined along oneside edge to the upper edge of one of the top panels along the leg ofthe V formed by such panel and connected and joined along one edge atits opposite end to the upper edge of one of said back panels, said backpanels being at least partially elastic and said connection to said backpanel along said one edge at the opposite end of said strap beingelastic.

8. In a brassiere as recited in claim 7 in which said strap intermediatesaid conn ction to said top panels and said connection at its oppositeend to the edge of said back panels forms an opening for receiving thewearers arm.

9. In a brassiere as recited in claim 8 in which said strap comprises aplurality of longitudinally extending elastic portions interconnected atspaced points intermediate their ends.

10. In a brassiere as recited in claim 9 in which one of saidlongitudinally extending portions is connected at its opposite ends tosaid top panel and said back panel, respectively.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,202,058 Malnick May 28, 1940 2,472,765 Shulman June 7, 1949 2,628,357Sider Feb. 17, 1953 2,949,916 Praveza Aug. 23, 1960 3,066,676 Kaupp Dec.4, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 663,283 France Apr. 8, 1929

1. IN A BRASSIERE HAVING A PAIR OF FRONT PANELS AND A PAIR OF BACKPANELS, SAID PANELS JOINING TO FORM A BODY ENCIRCLING BAND, THEIMPROVEMENT COMPRISING, A BREASTRECEIVING CUP IN EACH OF SAID FRONTPANELS, EACH OF SAID BREAST-RECEIVING CUPS HAVING A TOP PORTIONEXTENDING UPWARDLY OF SAID FRONT PANEL, THE TOP PORTIONS BEING JOINEDINTERMEDIATE SAID CUPS WITH THE UPPER EDGE OF SAID JOINED TOP PORTIONSFORMING A V EXTENDING UPWARDLY AND OUTWARDLY FROM THE POINT WHERE SAIDTOP PORTIONS JOIN, AND A PAIR OF ELASTIC SHOULDER STRAPS FIXEDLYINTERCONNECTED AND JOINED TO EACH OTHER AT ONE OF THEIR ENDSINTERMEDIATE SAID CUPS AND CONNECTED AT THEIR OPPOSITE ENDS TO SAID BACKPANELS, SAID ELASTIC STRAPS EXTENDING AWAY FROM THEIR POINT OFINTERCONNECTION AND ALONG ONE OF THE LEGS OF SAID V, EACH STRAP BEINGCONNECTED AND JOINED ALONG ONE SIDE EDGE TO THE UPPER EDGE OF ONE OF THETOP PORTIONS ALONG THE LEG OF THE V FORMED BY SUCH PORTION, EACH OF SAIDSTRAPS INTERMEDIATE SAID CONNECTION TO SAID TOP PORTION AND SAIDCONNECTION TO SAID BACK PANELS BEING SPACED FROM SAID TOP PORTION ANDSAID BACK PANELS TO FORM THEREBETWEEN AN OPENING FOR RECEIVING THEWEARER''S ARM.